EP 1180-1-1
1 Aug 01
CHAPTER 2 - LABOR LAWS, REGULATIONS AND CONTRACT PROVISIONS
2-1. General. Each of the statutes and their implementing regulations discussed below reflect the Federal
Government's commitment to a policy of labor protection. Enacted at different times and under different
administrations, these statutes seek to eliminate two destabilizing tendencies in the Federal procurement
process. First, the impetus toward wage-cutting is generally unavoidable in a system predicated upon the
award of contracts through competitive bidding to the lowest responsible, responsive bidder. Second,
while monopsonist (monopsony is defined as the domination of a market by a single buyer) pressures are
not as pervasive as they perhaps once were, they are nonetheless a consideration at many of the remote
facilities where the Corps performs. In other words, a single buyer of service, e.g., janitorial services,
may be in a position of depressing bids and, by extension, wages. These statutes, therefore, are designed
to remove the wage-depressing tendencies noted above by establishing a floor below which the wage rate
may not fall.
2-2. The Davis-Bacon Act (40 USC 276a-a(7)). This Act applies to construction contracts in excess of
,000 to which the Federal Government or the District of Columbia is a party. It specifies that not less
than minimum wages be paid to the various classes of laborers and mechanics employed on a particular
project based on the wages prevailing in the area as determined by the Secretary of Labor. PL 88-349
amended the Act as of July 2, 1964, to include fringe benefits in the "prevailing rate."
2-3. The Walsh-Healey Act (41 USC 35-45). This Act prescribes minimum wages to be paid
contractor's employees on contracts in excess of ,000 for the manufacture or furnishing of supplies.
The Department of Labor has not issued wage determinations under the Act for many years.
Accordingly, the Fair Labor Standards Act minimum wage generally applies. Enforcement responsibility
rests with the DOL.
2-4. The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 USC 201). This Act provides for the establishment of
minimum wage and maximum hour standards, creates a Wage and Hour Division within the DOL for
purposes of interpretation and enforcement (including investigations and inspections of government
contractors), and prohibits oppressive child labor. The Act applies to all employees, unless otherwise
exempted, who are engaged in: (1) interstate commerce or foreign commerce; (2) the production of
goods for such commerce; or (3) any closely related process or occupation essential to such production.
Enforcement responsibilities lie with the DOL.
2-5. The Copeland Act (40 USC 276c and 18 USC 874). This Act makes it unlawful to induce, by
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